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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22913185">every morning.</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/thejackestofasses/pseuds/thejackestofasses'>thejackestofasses</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Shall We Date?: Obey Me!</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Hurt/Comfort, Love Confession, Other, alternate ending to lesson 19-2, mc and mammon are both crybabies</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-02-26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-02-26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-01 15:35:18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,071</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22913185</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/thejackestofasses/pseuds/thejackestofasses</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Why would he wanna think about them leaving when he could just pretend that day was never gonna come?</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Main Character/Mammon (Shall We Date?: Obey Me!)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>104</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>every morning.</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p> </p>

<p></p><div class="">
  <p>They‘d been avoiding the topic of the coming end of the exchange program. Well, okay, it was more like <em>he'd</em> been avoiding the topic.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Starting about a couple months ago, Yuki had mentioned in an oh-so-casual tone of voice that the year was really flying by. Mammon hadn’t really understood at first, until Yuki had then elaborated that it was “kind of weird” to think about going back to the human world. At that point, his stomach had started to feel like it was turning itself inside out, and he’d muttered something like, “Yeah... guess it’ll probably be like havin’ to learn how to live like a regular human all over again, huh?” Then he’d hastily suggested that they watch a movie and that had been the end of that conversation.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>It had become a bit of a cycle: Yuki would make a comment about the end of the exchange program every once in a while, he would immediately change the subject, and then he’d forget about it until Yuki eventually brought it up again.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Then his carefully crafted veneer of nonchalance had all blown to pieces when Lucifer had opened his big stupid mouth to announce that it was the last week of Yuki’s stay in the Devildom. His hands had clenched the edge of the table so hard that he almost thought the wood would crack under his grip, and it had felt like the world was spinning around him. All of his brothers had been sitting around him, just talking about Yuki <em>leaving</em>, like it was something <em>worth </em>talking about, like Yuki leaving was just an <em>inevitability</em>. His mouth had felt like it had been glued shut, and all he could think was, ‘<em>I’ve gotta get outta here.</em>’  He had to get away from the talking, talking, <em>talking</em>.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>So he’d made his escape and he’d hid away in his room. Levi had followed after him for some reason, and at first he’d been tempted to lock his brother out. He hadn’t exactly been in the best mood for company, but... there had been an odd sort of softness in Levi’s voice, none of the usual insults being aimed at him... so he’d let his brother in, and Levi had simply sat down next to him on his couch and quietly set up a game for them to play together. It had been an unexpected moment of comfort for Mammon to have one of his brothers genuinely reach out to him, but it had been a brief comfort, and soon enough night had fallen and now he was alone in his room.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Staring up at his ceiling for a long time, it had become apparent to him that he wasn’t going to be getting any sleep that night, so he’d started messing around on his D.D.D. Usually browsing Akuzon for the next big item on his wishlist was enough to hold his interest, but he felt frustration bubbling up inside of him at the realization that the emptiness in his chest couldn’t be filled by making an impulse purchase. All of the items that should’ve been exciting to him just seemed... useless. Right as he was contemplating chucking his D.D.D across the room, there was a gentle knock at his door that made him jolt. Could that be Levi again...?</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“Mammon... can I come in?”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p><em>Yuki</em>. Their voice was almost whisper quiet, probably because they didn’t want to wake him if he was asleep, but it was undeniably them.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>His heart thudded painfully, and for a long moment, he felt frozen. There was a part of him that wanted to pout, to tell them to just pack up and leave already. (<em>Just pack up and leave already, instead of drawing out what was going to be one of the worst days of his life. Just pack up and leave already, before he clung to them and begged them please, </em><strong><em>please</em></strong><em> don't leave him.</em>) But he’d never been able to resist the opportunity to see their face. Especially not now.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Finally, he got up from his bed and hesitantly walked over to his door, opening it. “...What’s up? Ain’t it kinda late for you?” he asked. Apparently he’d taken long enough to answer the door that they’d thought he <em>was </em>asleep, because they had their back turned to him like they’d been about to leave. Seeming startled, they turned to face him, looking a little sheepish.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“Oh, I, um, was having trouble sleeping... so I thought I’d hang out with you. If you weren’t asleep and it was okay with you, I mean.” He was holding the door wide open, which they must have understood as the invitation it was, because they didn’t wait for a response from him before slipping inside. Walking over to his couch, he plopped down, and they followed him, sitting next to him almost tentatively.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“Sooo... wanna watch a movie? Or we could play a game. Levi was here earlier, and he left a couple of his behind. Which was weird for him, ‘cause he’s usually always whinin’ about how I don’t respect his stu—“</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“Mammon,” Yuki said, cutting him off in a soft voice, but with a certain firmness to it. There was a sinking feeling in his stomach. “I want to talk.”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“...’Bout what?” He tried to feign ignorance, but he could tell it wasn’t going to work this time.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“About next week.” At those words, something inside him twisted and snapped in two. He didn’t want to talk about it. He didn’t want to <em>think </em>about it. Why would he wanna think about them leaving when he could just pretend that day was never gonna come?</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“You’re leavin’ next week. So what? We already knew that, right? So what’s there to talk about?” Maybe that had come out meaner sounding than he’d meant, but he still felt confused by the wounded look that flashed across Yuki’s face. What did they have to look wounded about? They’d pretty much been kidnapped from the human world, and they had a home waiting for them, so they must be looking forward to leaving. (<em>They must be looking forward to leaving </em><strong><em>him</em></strong><em>.</em>)</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“Please,” Yuki said, and they were still giving him those sad puppy eyes, so any protest he was going to make died in his throat. “Just give me two minutes, and then if you still don’t want to talk about it, I’ll go and I won’t bring it up again.” He huddled in on himself a bit, as if wanting to shield himself from the conversation, but he didn’t tell them no, so they continued after a moment of silence.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“You know, back in the human world... I don’t really have a family. No parents, and I wasn’t that good at making friends either. I’ve always done the best I can to make the most of what I have, but... I could get pretty lonely.” He sucked in a breath at that. Come to think of it, Yuki had never really spoken much about what their life was like in the human world. It hadn’t occurred to him that maybe it was because their life in the human world had been less than ideal, and he’d never asked much about it because he hadn’t liked to think about them having a life without him in it. “So the thing is, being here in the Devildom, in the House of Lamentation, it’s the first time I’ve known what ‘home’ feels like.” Their voice cracked then, and his eyes widened as his gaze immediately shifted from the floor to their face, his heart squeezing at the sight of their watering eyes.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“For the first time, I feel like I have a family, like I have someone... special.” Special? (<em>Could he dare to hope that meant what he wanted it to mean?</em>) “I know that going back to the human world doesn’t necessarily have to mean I’ll never see any of you again, but it won’t be the same. I don’t know how often I’ll get to see you, and I don’t know if I’ll ever get to see you all together again. I want to play games with you and Levi. I want to go shopping with you and Asmo. I want to pull pranks on Luci with you and Satan. I want you and me to make ourselves sick having eating contests with Beel. I want to have movie nights with you and Belphie. I even want to get scolded by Luci with you. I want us all to have meals together, and have parties together, and just be in the company of each other.”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>At that point, tears were streaming down their face, and they were struggling to choke out their words. He felt himself beginning to panic, because <em>no</em>, he didn’t want them to cry. He just wanted to go back to yesterday, when they were smiling and laughing and everything was <em>fine</em>. “...And most of all, I want to wake up every morning knowing I’m going to see your face. I want to <em>stay</em>.” With those words, he finally felt himself snap out of his stupor. Yuki wanted to see <em>his</em> face every day...? They wanted to stay, here in the Devildom, with him?</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>Looking at them as they sobbed, he knew in that moment he’d do anything to not lose them.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“Dummy,” he said, throwing his arms around them. “...as if I don’t want ya to stay too!” His voice trembled, and he sniffed, realizing that he’d started to cry a bit himself. Yuki immediately curled into his embrace, as if desperately seeking comfort from him, and that solidified the resolve he’d found within himself.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“Now you listen here, Yuki, and you listen good. You’re not goin’ anywhere, okay? I don’t care if I gotta beg, or scheme, or work my ass off to keep ya here.” There was a confidence in his voice, and a steadiness in his hand as he rested it on their head to pet their hair, a sort of unfaltering certainty he hadn’t felt in a long time. If Yuki needed him to be strong for them while they fell apart in his arms, then he could do that. For them.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“It’s gonna work out, ‘cause I’ve got you at my side, and we make the best damn team in the whole Devildom! Ain’t that right?” He felt Yuki smile against his shoulder at that, even as he felt a wet spot on the shoulder of his shirt from their tears, and he tightened his hold on them as a small grin softened his own face. (<em>No one, not even Lucifer... no, not even Lord Diavolo... </em><strong><em>no</em></strong><em>, not even his father Himself, could tear them from his arms.</em>)</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“I mean, there’s no way the Great Mammon would ever just let go of the person he loves,” he added, and he felt Yuki suddenly stiffen. ...<em>Oh</em>. He hadn’t meant to say the “love” part. Feeling his cheeks burn, he almost pulled back and tried to splutter an excuse about how he <em>totally</em> didn't mean “love” in a romantic way, but then—</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“Do you mean it?” Something about how small their voice sounded gave him pause. “Fragile human”, he’d called them before, and they <em>did</em> sound fragile then. He didn’t know exactly why, but it compelled him to answer honestly.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“...‘Course I mean it. The Great Mammon wouldn’t lie about somethin’ like that,” he said quietly, his heart thumping at his admission. Yuki paused for what was probably no more than a few seconds, but what felt like an eternity.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“Okay,” they said.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>He furrowed his eyebrows. “Okay?”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“I believe you. So if you say we’re gonna figure this out together somehow, then I know we will.” Just like that, his heart was soaring. It was settled then. Yuki was staying with him, no matter what. He was about to say something, but then Yuki spoke again, pulling back just slightly to look him in the eyes with a fond expression. “And Mammo?”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>The nickname was one they’d used before, but it still caught him off guard, and he felt himself blushing again, especially as he noticed how close their face was to his. “Huh?”</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>“I love you too,” they said, leaning in to brush their lips against his flushed cheek in a featherlight kiss.</p>
</div><div class="">
  <p>...<em>Oh</em>. Maybe everything really was going to be okay.</p>
</div>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>my ocs tend to be lonely types who struggle with connecting with others (totally not me projecting or anything lol) so uhhh, i reject the reality of mc simply accepting the concept of living a literal world away from the only family they’ve ever known.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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